Webmaster, I recently moved into a home with a Kent woodstove that is installed in a bedroom at one end of my single story house. I want to have a woodstove as a full capability heating backup for my 2000 sq ft house. I am trying to decide whether to move the Kent to a more central location or to install another woodstove such as a Waterford Trinity.

What square footage can the older Kent be expected to heat? (The stove's burn box dimensions are about 20wX24lX17h and constructed in steel and with ceramic tiles) How many square feet for the Trinity? (Is this stove as good as I have heard?) Any other considerations?

Answer:

he kent is an older (mid-80's) stove that was quite decent. It'll handle around 1200 square foot of floor space if you crank it up a bit. It will not have a real long burn time as the firebox is relatively small.

As far as the Trinity, I do not have personal experience. Waterford does make nice castings, and I suppose the products is as nice as their other models..which have a good reputation.

No doubt that moving it to a more central area might help with it's ability to serve as a full backup, but you have to weigh the installation and chimney costs. This could easily run over $1000., even without buying a new stove.